Two Guesses
by allyssumdays
Summary: The sent of gunpowder and blood filled the alley; the two alchemist leaned heavily against the wall, breathing harsh. "You're gonna make it through this, Ed." - "Then why do you sound so worried?" RoyxEd, complete - under construction
1. Chapter 1

Hey! Me again! Sorry it's been a while since I updated anything. But it's gonna be a bit longer, because my brothers deleted all my files! But, to keep you reading, I've composed this (while blissfully thinking my files were waiting for me on my computer in Louisiana) one night as I was listening to 'When I'm gone' by 3 doors down. Enjoy!

Ed walked down an alleyway towards Roy's apartment, hoping to catch him after work. As usual, Roy had worked through the night and would probably come home like the walking dead. So Ed thought he'd ask if he'd been promoted again before he passed out. After all, 2 more promotions and Roy would be next for Furer.

But something kept bugging Ed. He felt like he was being watched. But whenever he looked around, he couldn't see anyone. It was like when he knew Envy could shape-shift. He never knew if he was being followed, or if he just imagined that someone was looking at him when he looked at them. He was about 6 yards from Roy's door.

"Hey kid."

Ed looked around, quickly, seeing a man in a doorway. His face was hidden by shadows, and he seemed to have something behind his back.

"What's a states alchemist doing walking the back alleys of Central?" He asked in a sickening voice.

"That's not any of your business." Ed said walking away slowly.

"On the contrary." The man said, stepping forward, "It's completely my business."

Before Ed could react, the man pulled out a gun, took aim and shot Ed's left shoulder. He got a perfect shot and Ed felt his shoulder shatter and pop out of it's socket. Along with disabling his shoulder, Ed couldn't do alchemy, leaving him open for another attack.

"And now the famous Fullmetal Alchemist is nothing but a worthless teen." The man continued, walking towards Ed with surprising speed.

Ed tried backing up, but stumbled over a rat (do they have those in central?). The man quickly closed the already little distance between them, pinning Ed to a wall with his arm holding Ed's throat.

"You know, normally, I would have just shot you in a vital area and left it at that." The man said as if he was commenting the weather. "But I decided to let you die a slow death. So now, you're going to pass out, and bleed to death."

Ed tried to pry the man off, but with just one arm, it was pointless. He could still breathe slightly, but not enough to stay conscious for much longer. He tried to yell, but the man pressed harder. As Ed's vision started to blur, he thought he could hear someone running. Did he get free? Was he running? No, he could still feel the pressure. So who was it?

"Ed!"

'Ah, so now I'm hallucinating.' Ed thought, There was no way Roy would be coming after him yet. 'I guess I don't mind. After all, what's a little dream before I die?"

"Stay out of this, old timer. Or you could follow him if you want."

'The shooter…Is that really Roy?' Ed thought. He tried to take a breath, and it was a bit of a struggle, but he managed to fill his lungs. That alone helped clear his vision enough to look towards where he thought the voice had come from. Lo and behold, he could see the faint outline of a dark hair man in a blue outfit, which could only be explained as Roy.

"Drop him." Roy said, giving the shooter his best death glare.

"On whose orders? Don't you realize I could take you out just as easily?" The man asked incredulously.

"Do you know who I am?" Roy asked, pulling something out of his pockets. "I am the Flame Alchemist. I could destroy you before you could even point the gun at me."

"Really? And if I do this?" He asked cockily. Ed felt himself being pulled away from the wall. The man shifted his grasp to the front of Ed's neck, and held him (Ed suspected) in front of himself as a human shield of sorts. Ed could no longer see Roy or almost anything else. He felt something poking his stomach and guessed he shooter was once again ready to shoot.

Roy meanwhile, was panicking. He knew where the gun was pointed. What was he supposed to do? There was no way that he could get close enough to grab Ed, and he wasn't sure if he could maneuver his alchemic flames around him. Even if he could, the shooter would most likely pull the trigger if Roy even moved.

Seconds ticked by, when Ed said suddenly in a strangled voice, "Just snap."

Roy inhaled sharply, but, struck by inspiration, snapped. Mingled in with the roar of the flames was a shot, and Roy knew he had to move quickly. He moved forward behind the flames, and managed to pull Ed away as the flames engulfed the shooter.

Roy fell against a wall with Ed leaning heavily against him. He was taking deep, sharp breaths in an attempt to regain proper breathing. But every now and again he'd cough, and Roy knew it wasn't just because he couldn't breathe right when he saw the blood.

"Ed! C'mon Ed say something!" Roy yelled.

"I would if I could breath!" Ed said, gasping every few words.

Roy shook his head, pulling out his cell phone to call for help. After telling Riza (why her? I don't know) where they were, Roy tried to get Ed to hold still. Ed was trying to move closer to the shooter.

"C'mon I get still take him." Ed was saying softly.

"Just hold still! We need to put pressure on the wounds to slow the bleeding!" Roy said irritably. " Lean back for the exit wounds."

Ed huffed and leaned back against Roy. He had momentarily forgotten that his shoulder had also been shot, and hissed in pain from the contact.

"It's gonna hurt, Ed. But it's the only way. Now put your other hand on your shoulder, I'll take the stomach."

Roy was trying to remember what came next in the damn emergency first aid book he read. Apply pressure to stop the bleeding, and then….Make sure the injured doesn't think about death.

"You're gonna be alright Ed." He said without really thinking.

"Then why do you sound so worried?" Ed asked suddenly in a bitter voice.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Okay, I know you all hate me for this, but look at it this way...If you kill me now, I won't tell you if Ed lives or dies...Now then, if you want to find out, review!


	2. Chapter 2

Whoa...2 days, and 10 reviews! AND NO THREATS! And so, here we are, with chapter 2 in what has been my quickest update ever. Enjoy!

Roy wasn't sure what to say.

"Sorry." Ed said. "I know it'll be alright. But in case...it doesn't…"

What happened next completely baffled the Flame alchemist. Ed turned to face Roy and pulled his hand off his shoulder, pushing off the ground. Roy felt the younger alchemist's lips press against his own, and blinked in a bemused way. A moment later, Ed pulled back, but quickly out his hand back to his shoulder, grimacing.

"Feels like I've got splinters all up and down my shoulders." Ed said, laughing slightly.

"Ed….." Roy said, looking at Ed wit a confused worried look.

Before either could say anything, a screech of tires could be heard, causing them to look down the alley towards the street. Riza climbed out and ran towards them, yelling on the way,

"Winry will kill you if you die, Ed!"

Ed smiled, knowing Riza was trying to keep him awake. But he was so tired….

"C'mon Ed, you need to stand up for a second." Roy was whispering into his ear.

"Sleep…" Ed said softly, his eyes fluttering closed.

'Blood loss must be taking its toll.' Roy thought. "There'll be plenty of time to sleep later, you need to see a doctor."

Ed mumbled something Roy didn't quite catch but it sounded like 'don't need to hear how short I am from a doctor.' Roy rolled his eyes but stood up, lifting Ed with him. He carefully pulled Ed into his arms and started to carry him towards Riza.

"Did you see the shooter?" She asked quickly.

"Shooter? Oh, you mean that pile of wheezing ash?" Roy said.

Riza gave him a shrewd look, then turned around to lead Roy back to the car. "You should have called 911, sir."

"Why? It would have taken more time to tell them my address, so I called someone who already knew where I lived."

"That's not the point!" She said, opening the back door so Roy could set Ed down. "You'll need to sit with him to--"

"I know, slow the pressure, I was working on it." Roy said, shuffling in.

A moment later Riza was flooring the gas, causing Roy to grip his door in panic. People moved out of the way as soon as they saw the driver, as Riza had rushed through here before. It was a regrettable experience not to move right away….o.o"

Meanwhile, Roy allowed his thoughts to stray back to the alley. What exactly happened? One second he was telling Ed he'd be fine, an the next…Ed kissed him! It was puzzling. Ed had never acted like he felt…that...way… As you can tell, Roy didn't usually think like this, or he wouldn't be so worried about it.

'This is ridiculous.' Roy thought, looking at the young blonde who was peering about calmly.

"How's Ed?" Riza said, honking violently at someone who didn't move fast enough.

"Tired." Ed answered. "But the bastard won't let me sleep."

'And so is that! He did a mental 180...or something…' Roy admonished. But instead chose to say,

"I said you could sleep after we get to the doctor." Roy said as if he were talking to a child.

"Yeah, yeah…" Ed replied sleepily.

They arrived at the emergency room, Riza running ahead to threaten people for immediate assistance. Roy help Ed out, and once again carried him.

"Ed, you can't die until you tell me why." Roy said.

"Why…." Ed muttered. "It's because….it's complicated…."

Roy just sighed, knowing that was about as much as he'd get for now. A medic was wheeling a bed towards him, so he'd have to ask later.

"Lay him on here sir." The young man said.

Roy relinquished his charge then stood there, thinking 'Now what?" until Riza walked over and said in a low voice, "You should probably go home and change sir."

"Right." Roy said in an almost dazed voice.

"C'mon, I'll give you a ride." Riza said softly.

Roy nodded, following his best gunman. Riza could tell he was a bit shaken, but she didn't bother trying to get any details out of him yet. Despite what he knew (or thought he knew), everyone could tell he cared about the Elrics more than he let on. Because every time Ed got hurt, he'd sit in his office staring out the window until Ed came in to give him a report. Elric

She pulled over at the apartment building. Roy thanked her and went inside to change, telling her he'd be fine and meet her at the hospital later, knowing she'd go back.

He quickly went inside and changed, nearly tripping over a pile of paperwork in the process. It was at this time he remembered; The shooter. Roy rolled his eyes, then ran for the door, hoping the shooter didn't run. He (ahem) forgot he had fried the poor (but deserving) man.

He sighed, and called 911 and reported anonymously reported a crime and that a suspect needed immediate attention. Then he left, very quickly.

Back at the hospital

"How is he?" Roy asked the doctor that he was informed handled Ed.

Roy was outside of the room Ed had been wheeled to after he left the emergency room. Riza left shortly after to settle the anonymous call (which she didn't believe). Roy, meanwhile, had started to get worried when he saw a nurse walk out with a small basin of blood and what looked like splinters of bone.

So tell me, what happens next? Should Ed die, or will a medical miracle save him? Tell me with reviews! Huzzah!

Also, I bet you're thinking, 'This is new. In most stories, Roy kisses Ed first. WTF?' But that's the point, I say. I'm switching things up a bit. Trying to grab your interst. Did it work?


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter Three**

"Well, he's a bit out of it, but he's fine. " The man said brightly. "The first shot to his shoulder managed to just hit the tip of the scapula causing the bone to shatter. Then it popped the muscles out of the socket. It's gonna be a while before he can use the arm."

"So what about his stomach?" Roy added.

"Not as bad as it looked. It just hit a few arteries and somehow managed to slide between his stomach and liver...This kid just had the most luck I've ever seen." The doctor shook his head. "That's about the only reason I can figure, is luck." He looked at a clock, then said, "He should be waking up now, so you can head in. A nurse will be by in about 20 minutes to make sure he came out of the anesthesia alright."

Roy nodded, then walked into the room as the doctor hurried to help someone.

Ed was in the bed closest to the window, muttering something incomprehensible. As Roy walked closer, he could make out 'and it was my favorite jacket, too...', as Ed was staring at the blanket with half opened eyes.

"Let me guess; They had to cut your jacket?" Roy asked in an amused tone.

"Yes, and it was my favorite jacket too." Ed said again, not moving his gaze.

Roy smirked, realizing this was what the doctor meant when he said 'a bit out of it'.

Ed looked up at Roy, then said, "Hey, you're here! I thought I was hallucinating again!"

Roy cocked an eyebrow at Ed. "You hallucinated before?"

"Yeah, when that whatz-his-facit had me pinned to the wall." Ed said, his words slurring as if he were drunk. "I heard you yell, but didn't think it was you."

'Well then.' Roy thought.

"Tell me Ed, what were you doing in my alley?" Roy asked out of sheer amusement.

"Hm...That's a tough one. I think it had something to do with promotions...Yes! I wanted to know if you'd been promoted again!" Ed said, obviously pleased with himself.

Roy just stared at the younger boy. Then he stood up and started towards the door. "Ed, wait here for a second."

"Whatever old man." Ed said sleepily, yawning.

'Note to self; Get Ed back for calling me old.' Roy thought. But he headed to a nurse and asked what kind of painkillers they had Ed on.

"Mr. Elric? They put him on..." She checked her clipboard, " Morphine, why?"

Roy shook his head. "No reason. I think they might have given him a bit much is all." He smiled.

"Well, is he alright?" Se asked seriously.

"He's fine, just a bit out of it. And that's exactly what the doctor said." Roy said, turning back towards the room. Where he saw Ed studying his right hand, wondering aloud why it couldn't have been the one shot.

"Makes sense, doesn't it?" Ed asked, as Roy walked in. "I could just go and get a new one, but no, it's the left one that gets hit."

Roy smiled, shaking his head. 'I should get some of those meds to go...'

Ed looked over at Roy, saying, "Oh, you're back. Or maybe you really are a hallucination this time...I'm tellin' you, it's a conspiracy. There's a bunch of these little green dudes that come through here singing the Quangle Wangle's Hat."

Roy just looked at him, thinking that maybe he should get that nurse to come back...

"The Quangle Wangle's hat?" Roy asked lightly.

"Yes. You see, on top of the Crumpety tree lives the Quangle Wangle. But nobody's ever seen his face because of his beaver hat which is a hundred and two feet wide with ribbons and bibbons on ever side. And--" Ed suddenly stopped his hurried explanation, and suddenly gave Roy a look that clearly said 'oh crap'.

"Ed? What's wrong?" Roy asked worriedly.

"I, um...Nothing." Ed said, looking away as his face took a slightly pinker hue.'He just now remembered what happened..." Roy thought. He chose to sit next to Ed, who had started staring out the window.

"You haven't told me why, Ed." He said softly.

"Yeah, I did." Ed replied, sighing slightly. "It's because it's complicated."

"Want to explain?" Roy said, looking at him.

"Ever since I joined the military, we've gotten into arguments. But no matter how bad they were and no matter what was said, I knew that you cared about me and Al. And it wasn't soon after that when I decided that I liked you, because you always acted like you'd make a great dad one day."

Ed smiled slightly. "But a few weeks after we brought Al back and defeated the Humonculi, I was thinking about what we should do next. Should I go back to Risembul, or stay in Central? And for some reason, I started thinking about you. And that startled me, because I'd based a few decisions on what you might think. And that feeling from some years and months before had changed, but I didn't know how much until I was pinned against the wall today..."

Roy chose not to say anything, absorbing the younger alchemist's confession.

"After realizing how close I was, it didn't seem fair that I was going to die, and never figure it all out. You'd come home and go inside, and probably not find my body for a few days. I didn't want to die, not alone like that. When you yelled, I thought I imagined it, and I didn't mind so much, but when I saw it was you, I was actually glad you were there. "

"Why?" Roy asked bemusedly. " Why did it make a difference if you thought you were going to die?"

"Because, I wasn't going to die instantly, so I could at least be near you when it happened. But I'm glad it worked out that way. Everything felt cold, I assume from the lack of blood, but I was warm in your arms. It was then that I figured out how I felt, and I'll be damned if I didn't do something to show you."

Roy stared at Ed, surprise at how defiant that last bit sounded.

"So um..." Ed blushed a bit, coming to full terms with what he said. " So now you know. And I want you to know that until you know how you feel, I don't want to say anything else on the matter."

Roy nodded, his eyes drooping slowly. "Right..."

Ed looked at him, then said, "You should go home to sleep, Roy. I heard from Fuery that Riza kept you at the office all night."

Roy looked over at Ed, and nodded again in agreement. "Alright. You should get some rest too."

"Are you kidding? The painkillers these doctors have me on will get me to sleep whether I want to or not!" Ed said in a teasingly light voice.

Roy stood up and headed towards the door, where he paused and looked back.

"I'm glad you're okay Ed." He said dropping his usual facade.

Ed smiled. "Thanks..."


	4. Chapter 4

First of all, I want to thank those of you who reveiwed or are planning on reveiwing. I'd also want to say thanks to everyone else you's reading this, because you obviously like this story enough to have read this far. I hope you like this chapter, and if you see an mistakes, please reveiw and tell me. If you don't, reveiw anyways. I've gottn 30 reveiws for three chapters, making this the most popular story right now. And for those of you who don't support this pairing but are reading this anyways, I'm going to be posting a non-yaoi version in a week of so. Thanks to NoZoMi17 for bringing this idea to me. You should go to her page. Not now, though. Read this page first. Then go.

Also, you may recieve two emails saying this as been updated, I forgot something the first time, sorry to bother you. Still, Enjoy!

At the office

Why was he at the office? Because home seemed to be a bad place at this time, what with the investigation squad verifying that Ed was indeed shot there and that the man found was the shooter. And so he ended up at the office to think without interruption.

'Okay, so Ed likes me. He's not sure why and when he started to.' Roy listed in his head. 'The reason he hasn't told me before is because he wasn't sure how to say it...or was it because he didn't know how I'd react?...How am I reacting?...This is what he meant by complicated...'

Without warning, Roy dropped his head on his desk, saying out loud, "Why does it have to be so complicated!"

"Something troubling you, boss?" Havoc said, leaning against the open doorway.

"Plenty." Roy said still talking to the desk.

Jean stared at his superior, trying to figure out how he was going to figure out what happened.

"So, Ms. Riza tells me someone shot Fullmetal." He said almost casually.

"Yes. Was there a point to this conversation?" Roy replied.

"So what happened? You've never been this shaken up before, and Ed's been hurt worse then this. What's up?" Jean said, walking towards Roy's desk.

Roy looked up, then explained his situation, starting at the beginning, and stopping at the end. (...duh...)

A few seconds of silence followed, until Jean said "So what are you going to do?"

Roy gave him a hard look, saying, "I don't know, or I would have said what I was going to do."

"Well, as my grandma would say, see if he fits." And after seeing the look of confusion on Roy's face, Jean added, "Every time my grandma calls to check on me, she asks if I'm married yet, and when I'd say no, she'd go into this rampage over how 'one day I'll find the right person, and I'll know, because when we hold each other, we could tell that we fit together'. I didn't make much sense of it," He said, shaking his head, "But I think she means you'll know that you should be together because it would feel right...Or something..."

He walked towards the door, saying over his shoulder, "Well boss, I go paperwork to do, and Ms. Riza left Black Hayate with instructions to destroy something if I took more that 20 minute breaks. Good luck boss."

Roy watched him go, then resumed hitting his head on his desk. 'I hate complicated situations. It's just like paperwork.'

He sighed, looking at his watch. 'The squad should still be at the alley, so now what? I need some sleep...'

Roy finally decided to head back to the hospital to check on Ed. Better there than here.

At the hospital

Roy found Ed in almost the exact position he left him in, staring out the window.

"Ed, did you sleep at all?" Roy asked looking at the young alchemist.

"Not really, I keep thinking I'm going to bleed to death in my sleep." He said lightly.

Roy raised an eyebrow in confusion, asking, "Why?"

"That was the original plan according to the shooter. I was supposed to pass out from suffocation, then bleed to death." He replied, turning to look at Roy. "And you don't look like you've slept at all either."

"The investigation squad won't let me into my house." Roy said, hoping he sounded convincing.

"Oh, that's not right." Ed said, resuming his stare out the window.

Roy said nothing, but made a quick decision and walked over to the bed Ed was in, and sat down. He gently pulled Ed down by his right shoulder, saying, "Go to sleep Ed, you won't bleed to death, I promise."

The resulting situation was Ed leaning against Roy already half asleep, and Roy thinking, 'This isn't so bad...' Their combined body heat made them both comfortably warm, but also made Roy realize how tired he was. ' I shouldn't be falling asleep.'

'But it seems like a good idea.' He argued with himself. 'Why not?'

'Because, I'm lying next to Ed, and I should--'

'What's so wrong with being next to Ed? It's very comfortable...'

A minute later, Roy realized this is what Jean must have been talking about. It was comfortable, but not just in a physical way, he felt very content and peaceful.

'That settles that, then.' He thought, allowing him self to drift into sleep.

A few hours later

Roy's eyes fluttered open, as he suddenly felt like he was being watched. After a quick glance around the dark room (dark? How late was it?), he noticed Ms. Riza Hawkeye sitting in a chair watching him sleep with a slightly amused expression.

"Can I help you, Lieutenant?" Roy asked softly, so as not to wake Ed.

"No sir." She said, sounding pleasant. "I thought I'd check on Edward and then head to your place to make sure you were okay, but you just made my job a bit easier."

Roy raised an eyebrow in surprise. Riza had never used that tone with him. It was startling almost.

"So, I assume he told you?" She continued lightly.

Roy blinked quickly. "Wha—I don't know what you mean..." He stuttered.

She gave him a shrewed look, then said, "Edward asked me what he should do. There's no point in denying it."

Once again, Roy said nothing.

"So what are you going to do?" She asked, looking at her superior intently.

Roy sighed, "I'll give you two guesses." He said, closing his eyes.

Riza smiled slightly.

"I know what you're thinking." Roy said stiffly. "But this feels right, and nothing is going to change that."

Riza shook her head. 'Always with the defensive...'

"Don't tell me, tell him." She said, then stood to leave. "I filed the report, so that's less paperwork tomorrow. Since Ed's been targeted by someone, we're having him under guard 24/7, between you, Havoc, and me. I'm sure you have no objections?" She said, taking another tone, this time teasing.

Roy gave her a hard glance, then said, "Thank you. But I'm assuming this isn't a get-out-of-work free excuse, is it?"

"I'll give you two guesses." She said, then left.

Roy sighed. "Thought not..." He spared a glance at a nearby clock, then groaned slightly as it read 2:53 am. "I can' only guess how long Riza was sitting there. And what was so amusing?"

"You talk in your sleep." Ed said softly, clearly tired still.

"Ed? How long have you been listening?"

"Around the first two guesses." He said, taking a deep breath. "So were you planning on going back to sleep, or getting a head start on that paperwork?"

"Sleep. It was bad enough missing one night, never again. So what was I saying?" He asked tentatively.

"Something about getting an actual house with lots of dogs." Ed said dismissively. "But no cats. Then you had an argument with someone, along the lines of 'I don't care how much your brother likes cats'..."

Roy was silent, something he was quickly becoming good at.

Ed yawned, then nuzzled he head against Roy, saying, "Goodnight, Roy."

Roy looked at Ed, then relaxed completely. " 'Night, Ed."

Well, thanks again for reading, I hope it didn't take too long for me to update. And I'm pretty proud of my self for making this chapter this long, the others have been a bit short. And I have a habit of short chapters...Anywhoo, please review, and check out NoZoMi17's page. Bye!


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter Five**

Ed's eyes slowly fluttered open. Light...It was morning. Or afternoon, who knows.

But something was...out of place. It felt different from when he fell asleep. It took him a minute to figure out why. He was in the hospital, he could now feel his arm (how he missed the numbness) and the room was empty--

Empty! Ed quickly sat up (instantly regretted it) and looked for Roy. Who wasn't there. Ed was about to go on a rampage about how dare he leave, then it hit him the Riza had Roy working more likely than not.

And so he lowered himself very slowly to the bed, and let out a strangled gasp at the pain. He sat for a while, his mind slightly blurred from the pain. When he finally started thinking, he wondered if it would be worth the pain of standing up and finding a doctor to give him some painkillers. It couldn't be much worse than this, having to draw breath then gasping at the pain as it hurt so much.

"Great. Alright, Fullmetal, up you go." Ed said, talking to himself.

"No, you stay down." Came a voice from the next bed.

Ed looked over, and saw Jean Havoc laying down and looking all together relaxed.

"When did you get here?" Ed asked, thinking about asking more along the lines of where was Roy.

"Boss had paperwork, as usual, and you need to be on 24-hour watch. You were almost assassinated, remember?" Jean said, pulling himself up.

"Vividly." Ed replied dryly. "So why can't I get up?"

"What did those doctors give you?" Jean asked, giving Ed a hard look. "You were shot! You can't get up, the wound will open and you'll start bleeding again."

"Oh, right." Ed said with an air of idiocy.

"Good. Now lie in bed like a good boy and rest. Roy will have my head if you don't heal quickly."

Ed sat there, thinking about what had been said between him and Roy the previous night. '_Or was it early this morning? Depends on how you look at it, I suppose. Like, is the glass half full or half empty? Why is a raven like a writing desk? Wait, that's from Alice in Wonderland, Winry used to read that when we were kids. Or does she still read it?_'

Ed shook his head. '_How did I get on that subject?_'

"What's up?" Jean asked, noticing the very confused look on Ed's face.

"Nothing. Nothing at all..." Ed said, trailing away.

"Some thing's wrong, you sound like you've been hit in the head with a rolled up newspaper." Jean contradicted.

"Just thinking about something totally unrelated to the original thought." E said in a very calculating voice.

"And the original thought was about Roy?"

"Yup." Ed said, then it dawned upon him. "Wait, what?"

"You really surprised him, you know." Jean said, smirking at his own cleverness.

"Yeah, I know." Ed replied after a pause. "But I thought I was going to die, what could I lose?"

"Well, Edward, you might have to die anyways." Riza said as she walked into the room, followed by Roy.

"You went through all the trouble of saving me and now you're going to shoot me?" Ed asked, cocking his head to the side in a very confused manner.

"No. I mean you'll need to lay low for a while, so whoever tried to kill you thinks he did." She said, sitting down in a well-placed chair.

Roy said nothing, standing like a soldier near a wall, staring at the floor. Ed couldn't help but look at him with a questioning frown.

"So, where do I go? Back to Risembul?" Ed asked, tearing his eyes away from Roy.

"Not going to happen. " She said, opening a file. "Someone's after your blood, and in some cases, if they even slightly suspect you're alive," She glanced up at him with solemn eyes, "The assassin will be assigned to all family, close friends, everyone."

Ed's eyes widened slightly. "So what--?"

"Right now, it's pretty simple. Roy, Jean and I are the only ones who now you're alive, excluding the staff here at the hospital. But they can't say anything because of the patient-doctor privacy act. And since this is a military hospital, no one else saw you." She said softly.

"...I'm going to die?" Ed said softly.

"That's the only thing we can do, Ed." She said. "You'll have to be placed in a town, far away from any where you've been. Name change, different identity, the works."

Ed looked back at the blankets, his fist tightening slightly.

Riza stared at him for a moment, then stood, and walked towards the door, "I have to talk to the doctor so the story I fabricate matches his. Jean, you should go up to head quarters and clear out all of Edward's personal items from his room and send them to Risembul."

And so, Ed was left alone with Roy, who said still nothing and continued to stare at the floor.

"You okay?" Ed asked softly.

"Not really." Roy said in an almost dazed voice. "If you're supposed to die, I won't see you for a while."

Ed realized he was right. "And you're worried about it?"

"A little. After what happened...It's gonna be like you really died for a while." Roy replied, sounding next to child-like.

Ed smiled. " Then you'll just have to find out who killed me, won't you?"

Roy looked up, smiling slightly. "I guess so."

"But I have just one question; Am I going to have to dye my hair?" Ed asked, making a face that clearly said 'I don't wanna!'

Roy was now openly smiling. "I'll give you two guesses."


	6. Chapter 6

I did it!!! HUZZAH!!! The next xhapter is up (obviously) Unfourtunately, it's kinda angsty, but with a bit of fluff. Hope you enjoy, and please review!!!!

3 weeks later

--

'This is the worst possible thing I could do.' Roy thought to himself.

The funeral. Standing in a group of people, all who believed Ed was really dead. And he stood there, knowing the truth, holding it to his mind like a selfish child with candy.

He glanced around silently. There was Al, looking all together numb to the world. Next to him, Winry. Roy couldn't tell if she was so close to Al because he needed her, or if she needed him.

Widening his gaze, he saw everyone from the military. From Sergeant Brosh, lips silently moving in prayer, to Major Armstrong, face hidden by his mammoth hands. Between them stood Breda, Fuery, and countless others, most of them silent. And among them, Riza and Jean, looking for all the world the way Roy felt.

And Mrs. Hughes, with Elysia, trying to be strong as they stood through another military-led funeral--

Roy shook his head. 'I can't do this'. He turned to leave, when he caught movement out of the corner of his eye.

On a nearby hill, a figure sat, dressed in black. Roy couldn't make out the face due to a black hooded sweatshirt, but the person didn't seem familiar. Roy paused, then walked up towards the figure, hoping to whatever god would listen that it wasn't--

"Hey Roy."

--Ed.

"What are you doing here?" Roy asked, turning around to continue watching the groups as they began to talk.

"I thought it'd be rude not to show up at me own funeral." Ed replied lightly, pulling back the hood.

Roy was taken back when, instead of gold, Ed's eyes reflected a dull grey. His face was framed by black hair, which was no longer pulled back in a braid (due to lack of hair to pull back).

"And what would you do if someone saw you?" Roy asked, avoiding the fact he didn't much care.

"Hope that they'd assume they were seeing things." Ed answered, his voice seemingly tired. "I had to see them one more time, I thought. But to watch them suffer like this...I wish I could tell just one of them not to be so sad, but..."

Roy nodded. "It's hard, isn't it?"

"Yes." Ed said softly. He stood up, sighing. "Still, I suppose I should leave, shouldn't I?"

Roy stiffened. "I…It would be wise."

Ed glanced over at Roy, then smiled softly. "Still worried?"

"A bit."

"Relax, Roy." Ed offered, turning away from the grim procession. "It's not as though you'll never see me again."

'Are you sure?' Roy thought, but remained silent.

"Do me a favor though." Ed said, reaching out his right arm to grasp Roy's hand. "It's the best I can do for now." As he pulled back, Roy could feel the chill from lack of heat, and cool metal now in his hand. "Give Al my watch for me."

Roy swallowed, saying, "Riza's taking you to the town, isn't she?"

Ed nodded. "Yup. Hopefully, no one there knows her, or they might make that connection."

'Which is why I'm not going.' Roy thought. Roy was as well known as Ed.

Ed sighed. "Well, see ya…"

Roy nodded, dropping his gaze to the ground. "Bye."

He heard the footfall creep away as Ed left. Roy stared back at the small procession, hoping that he could keep himself together for the rest of the day.

Roy noticed with idle curiosity that a man was approaching the gravesite, looking very smug and cocky. Roy felt his blood begin to boil. 'Who the--'

His question was well enough answered as the man stood on the newly filled in soil, and laughed.

"You all are fools! The world will be much better without this blasphemer in it!! Let his soul be banished to the deepest reaches of Hell, and--"

A shot rang off, and the man found himself on the ground grasping his leg, howling with pain.

Every face flicked towards Riza, gun outstretched and smoking. Her face had tears slowly gliding down, and she straitened herself, shouting orders for a guard to escort the man to the hospital. In an instant, Jean, Armstrong, and Fuery volunteered, and were quickly dispatched, as the man continued screaming, "You think it is over? My comrades with come!! You will fall before the might of Leto, the God of the Sun!!!!"

Roy shook his head, wishing Ed could be here. He reached to rub his eyes, only to draw them away, tearstained.

'I hadn't realized…'

Roy shook his head, and walked back to the group, now offering sympathy to the grieving family.

Al smiled slightly, thanking them, but his eyes completely betraying the gesture. Roy's eyes softened, then rapidly hardened. This was not going to last. He quickly found Riza, telling her to take her time, but then to repot to the office to work on the case.

He began to leave, but felt something tugging at his overcoat. He looked down, seeing Elysia peering up at him with calculating eyes.

"Isn't Uncle Roy sad?" She asked, with the innocence of an angel.

Roy offered her the same expression Al had. "Very. But Uncle Roy," He said, crouching down to her eyes level, "Wants to make sure the people who hurt Edward get in trouble. So I have to go get started working right away."

Elysia nodded. "Uncle Roy is a lot like Daddy sometimes." Then she smiled. "I'll ask Mommy if I can send some cookies over later, because cookies make people feel better."

Roy smiled again, this one true. "Thank you. I'll see you later, okay? I think your Mommy needs you right now."

Again, the young girl nodded. "Mommy cares about a lot of people, and there aren't enough people to care for Mommy."

Roy stood up. "You're plenty enough to care for her, and that's what matters."

He turned away, then shook his head. 'Little kids are going to be the death of me.'


	7. Chapter 7

**Update: _After the funeral, Ed moved to a town in the middle of no-where, even more unrecognized than Risembul. A small profile is as follows:_**

**  
**

**Seth Daniels**

**Eyes: Dark grey**

**Hair: Black, short**

**Height: NOT IMPORTANT!!**

**Weight: NOT IMPORTANT!!**

**Age: approx. 20 years**

**Birth date: May eighth, year (I don't know how they keep track of years)**

**Occupation: Student, studying automachanics (see below)**

**Location: Caros, unknown town; Lives in rented house**

**General Background: Moved to this town for practical study as instructed by sensei, who said (And I quote) : "I can only teach you so much, the rest you have to screw up first." Has small clinic in the front area of his house, and once in a while messes up, but learns very quickly how to fix it. Appears less crude and has an almost aristocratic manner.**

**Chapter Six -- Almost eighteen Months After the Funeral**

Ed sighed, thinking as her started down a dusty sidewalk. 'I miss home.'

Because, no matter how nice it was, this town wasn't home. Caros was a small town, akin to Risembul; Farms, family owned businesses, everyone knew everyone (Except Ed). He lived in a mid-sized house in the middle of town that satisfied the basis needs for a bachelor. Walls, doors, and a roof. Kitchen, bath, den, bedroom, and spare (just in case; you never know what could happen). And he never had want for anything; He was basically guaranteed work.

But it still couldn't be home.

It wasn't as though he felt lonely. Quite the contrary, as the older lady named Mrs. Kalm who (along with insisting she be called Gram) lived down the street seemed to have adopted him. Her excuse:

"You seemed to lack the attention young men need to build proper confidence; You'll end up alone if you become withdrawn."

And so, Ed found himself visited by her at least once a day. Most often, he'd open the door and walk to, say, the bakery for some bread, and meet her along the way, and they'd end up walking together and chatting familiar things. Soon, Ed realized he started looking for her when he left his home, and now, they regularly entertained each other in a town where very rarely anything of entertainment happened. And so Ed existed in the simplicity, and desperately wished he could travel with Al again; After almost four years of travel, then the year or two of rest, he'd been looking forward to a trip they'd been planning for a few months.

But then this happened.

Ed paused, feeling suddenly sick; A familiar tug in his chest begged him to forget about it-- About the gun, the chill in the air, the warmth of Roy's arms...But the illusion wouldn't disperse, and Ed found himself gasping for air, willing himself not to start crying; Not here, not now.

He continued down the street and almost missed the doorway. He knocked softly, as a basic courtesy.

"Come in, it's unlocked."

Ed rolled his eyes, mentally scheduling a lecture for Gram; The more she said that, the more brightly the big sign flashed 'Come in, The Door's Unlocked, and I'm a Helpless Old Woman!!'

He wasn't prepared to walk in and see Jean Havoc laughing with her.

And neither apparently did the second lieutenant; He looked up and visibly paled, though it was only obvious to Ed.

"Ah, Seth, I believe I've told you about my grandson?" Came an encouraging voice.

Ed blinked, then smiled. "Ah, yes. I've heard a great deal about you, though names have a manner of escaping me. Seth Daniels. I apparently was adopted by your grandmother." Ed (Seth) said, suavely extending his hand with a look that said 'I'll kill you if you screw this up'.

'Identity change.' Jean reminded himself, looking at the one person he wasn't sure he'd ever see again. "Jean. Havoc, that is. It's nice to see ole' Gram helped someone before she died." He said, stretching out his own hand and shaking Ed's.

Until his grandmother promptly hit him with a cane (never far away). "I'm still alive, you idiots of my acquaintance."

Ed's mind was pouring out of his ears. 'Wasn't the whole point of me moving here to avoid contact? How did this happen?'

But he just laughed, having become a fine actor in the last few months. And so, the visit went smoothly, with Jean playing his part equally well, explaining all the things about himself Ed already knew. And so, when Ed excused himself to return to his shop, he mentally congratulated himself on passing the third-hardest chance encounter he could have, the hardest being with someone who thought he was dead. Followed by one with Roy.

Once inside his shop, however, he found himself shaking. That close...He'd been so close to his past. Closing his eyes, he let his imagination run loose.

He'd just left the Central Command building, after chatting with Jean. Soon, Al would walk in, trailed by either Winry or Sheiska, and most definitely Elysia. Ed would tell Al how much he hated work, and Al would point out the obvious; He could just leave the military. So Ed would just sulk, saying he had nothing better to do. If Winry was there, she' check his automail, showing him all manner of new upgrades. Sheiska would begin a crusade over the abuse of old books, and explain how her plans for her book recovery shop had advanced; She'd probably finished the cleaning lab, and was planing the--

A loud knock brought him back to reality.He turned, and walked back to the door, opening it carefully. Though he knew who was there.

The familiar smell of smoke assured him as such. He stepped aside, motioning the lieutenant in; It wasn't as though they were strangers. Though, technically, they had to be. But after closing and locking the door, switching a sign to 'CLOSED', and making sure none of the neighborhood rascals were hiding about, he walked over to Jean and lightly punched his arm.

"Well, I'm definitely not crazy." Ed noted, smiling slightly as he returned to his real dialect.

"That's a bit debatable, Ed." Jean said, smirking back. "Or Seth, whatever."

"Closed the door for a reason." Ed said, turning slightly. "I've got coffee."

About five minutes later, Jean was settled at a table and Ed was pouring coffee.

"Ed?"

"Yeah?" Came a reply as Ed turned to his fridge.

"Out of coriousity--" It mid sentence, Jean seemed to switch thoughts, "Are you putting milk in your coffee?"

"Hm? Oh, yeah. You dearest grandmother decided to have a bunch of people hold me down and force feed me milk twice daily." He made a slight face, then continued, "Until one day I just got it over with and downed it myself. Now, she accepts the fact that as long as I drink milk in my coffee, she won't force me to drown in the cow juice."

Though a moment later Ed wanted to drown Jean in milk when he started laughing at Ed's admission.

"Drowning you in milk?" He laughed again. "Man, the worse I got was a lecture about not eating beef for six months."

"...Why not?" Ed asked, handing him a coffee cup.

Jean shrugged. "Got bored."

After a moment of the 'oh, aren't you smart' look in Jean's general direction, Ed asked, "So what have I missed in the last year and a half?"

"Hm, let's see; Two marriages, a first kiss, a birthday, and of course someone being brought back to life." A moment later, "But not in that order."

"... Care to elaborate?" Ed asked in an almost idiotic way.

"You remember Maria Ross?" Ed nodded. "So you know how she 'died' and went on vacation in Xing. Well, she came back. And married that Lieutenant Brosh."

"Okay, that's 2 out of 4; What about the first kiss?"

"OOooOO." Jean said, doing a grand impression of a third grader. "Elysia got a boyfriend."

"...She's how old?" Ed asked.

"About 6 and 1/2. I think."

"...Maes would murder the poor kid." Ed said, shaking his head.

"Or marry them right away." Jean said.

"True." Ed noted, drinking some of his coffee. "So who else got married?"

Jean smiled. "I have pictures."

Ed found himself staring at pictures of Riza looking very feminin in a white fluffy-ish dress, next to none other than...JEAN HAVOC!!

"You are looking at Mr. And Mrs. Jean Havoc, as of 1 year and three months." Jean said, grinning.

...tick tick tick tick tick "You DOG!!"

And such began the traditional 5-7 minutes of men being weird about marriage and the like.

"So who's birthday did I miss?" Ed asked, beaming slightly. _And I thought it'd be hard to talk to him after all this time..._

More pictures. Jean had a daughter, named Sierra. As Jean enjoyed pointing out, she had fair hair and green eyes.

"You know," Ed mentioned, crawling out of a small mountain of pictures, "If you're not careful, you'll be the next Maes Hughes."

"Is that a problem?" Jean mocked, running a hand through his hair absentmindedly. "Far as I can tell, everyone liked him."

Ed nodded. "Have you seen Al or Winry lately?"

"Try Al and Winry." Jean said. "Winry was in my wedding," Ed noted how much Jean seemed to brag about the fact, "and Al's in Central helping Roy."

"...Helping Roy do what?" Ed asked, looking thoroughly perplexed.

"Figure out you killed you."

For some reason, Ed flushed. _He still hasn't given up?_ "How are they?"

"Fine. Winry keeps trying to kill people that mention the fact that she looked hot in the brides'-maid dress." Jean said, grabbing a particular picture to prove his point. "Except Al, if he says it, and she goes red and beats Fuery with her wrench."

"...Why Fuery?"

"He's usually about to say something important, like, 'Riza shot some innocent civilian'. Not that specifically, but it's the basic idea." Jean replied, rolling his eyes. "Every time someone gets shot, Fuery thinks Riza did it, and comes to tell me to...How did he put it?...Oh, 'Get my wife home and teach her to behave'. Or something..."

Ed laughed. 'It's probably the other way around.'

"So, um..." And once again, Ed flushed without reason.

Jean gave him a side-ways glance, then smirked. "Roy's been keeping busy. He's been working personally with the Investigation Squads in charge of your case to figure out who was behind the assassination. I think being one of three people to know you're alive keeps him working so you can come back. Of course, most people just assume he wants to make it seem like he's noble so he gets promoted."

Ed avoided looking at Jean. 'I would've thought the same thing if I didn't know better.'

Jean sighed, saying, " I think I have something you should see."

"More pictures?" Ed questioned, almost fearfully.

"Nope--Well," He said, surfacing from a bag at his side, "Some what."

After returning the mountain of pictures to a neat and orderly pile, Jean dropped a large file in the center of the table.

"What's this?" Ed asked softly, reaching for it.

"Your file. Everything about the case, starting from the day of your 'death', including all press released information, as well as...everything else." Jean said, moving his pictures to a specific compartment in his bag.

Ed blinked, bemused, then wondered, "Why are you carrying this around with you?"

"...So I don't lose it." ... "...Again."

"...I won't ask." Ed said, shaking his head as he opened the file. "But what's the story so far?"

" Our theory is that a group of extremists from Lior, who think that it's your fault their former 'paradise' fell to pieces," Jean replied with a somber expression. "Organized a plot to get rid of you, as well as everyone else in connection to you." Ed started to say something, but Jean interrupts, "Yes, that mean Al was in danger. Another reason he's in Central now. Not that he knows that."

Ed nodded, flipping through some of the papers.

"You were at the funeral, weren't you?" Jean questioned suspiciously.

"Blame your wife." Ed said, placing a small pile of newspapers on the table. "She asked if we could wait until after the funeral to leave, I said as long as I didn't have to wait in some weird hiding place. So I went." He thought for a moment. "Do you suppose she knew your grandmother lives here, and moved me here on purpose?"

Jean paused, then said, "Probably. That would explain why she insisted on placing you herself."

Ed rolled his eyes, and saw a picture of the funeral on the front page on a newspaper. _'Fullmetal Funeral Gone Bad' _the headline read.

'As the country said good bye to one of the heroes of our time, the peace was shattered by a man suspected of the crime.

On March 23th, Edward Elric, the youngest State Alchemist who merited the title 'Fullmetal', was shot on his way to see his superior. He died shortly after reaching the hospital from blood loss, survived by his younger brother Alphonse, and childhood friend Winry Rockbell (pictured together at left) among others. While quietly mourning their loss, a man of unknown origins and showing extreme disrespect for the state boldly exclaimed, "You all are fools! The world will be much better without this blasph--'

Ed shook his head, then asked of Jean, "Did they learn anything from this guy?" He held up the paper.

Jean nodded. "He told us that no matter what we did to him, his mission was complete, and now his 'brothers' would be at peace." He tipped his head back at the memory, a if it made his neck sore. "That was where our conspiracy theory came from. Luckily, he wasn't as tough as he seemed, because then he went on to tell us, 'This is just phase one; Next comes the younger Elric, and all you dammed DOGS!!' And so on and so forth." Jean finished dully.

"So the guy had a vendetta against alchemists?" Ed mumbled, then continued to dive into the file.

"Yup. You gave the group a bad impression of alchemists apparently." Jean said, shaking his head with a slightly amused look. "After that, Roy started his infamous campaign starting with having Armstrong go to Lior himself."

"Why?"

"Because," Jean said, "At the time we thought it was a State Alchemist thing, and Roy trusted Armstrong could hold his own against assassins. And he was right. A group of five tried to kidnap him so they could bury him in the desert. Needless to say--"

"Armstrong crushed them and promptly came to Central with them each in their own little box." Ed mumbled.

"Pretty much, yeah." Jean said. "And the results of that expedition and others are in that folder."

Ed nodded again, finding he had nothing to say.

Jean watched Ed for a moment. 'Does he think he's going to memorize it?'..."Ed, you're not going to do something incredibly stupid because I showed you that file, are you?"

Ed glanced up. "Nope. Ed's dead, remember? I'm Seth, and the most incredibly stupid thing I've done was tried to attach someone's automachanic-leg to their arm."

"...That is pretty stupid..."

Jean found himself tackled to the floor a second later. "I KNOW IT IS!!"

When Jean prepared to leave a few hours later, he kept an even eye on Ed. Something was telling him that Ed had something important to say, but for some reason wasn't putting into words.

"Um, Jean?"

Finally. "Yeah, Ed?"

He turned to see Ed, though he didn't even look like Ed anymore. Gone were the black cloths covered by a red jacket, replaced by simple dark blue pants and a black button down shirt. Black hair, grey eyes. He was standing in the middle of a doorway looking very out of place to Jean. Like Ed should be standing in the doorway of an office in Central, not some shop down the street from his grandmother

Ed flushed, for the third time he noted. "Could you, um...When you get to Central--"

Jean smiled softly. 'It's not like he's used to asking people to speak for him.'"I'm going to talk to Roy about a few things when I hit Central."

Ed sighed. "Thanks."

"For what, Seth?" Jean said, penning the door innocently. "I should thank you for watching my grandmother for me."

Ed smiled, nodding. "Until next time, then, Mr. Havoc."


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter Eight**

Ed watched as the clouds turned from white to grey, and finally, a dark charcoal color, signaling rain. He sighed frustratingly. 'Even if I can pull off being an automail student, I still can't get it to work like Winry's.'

He turned away from his window, knowing if his arm got too damp he'd have to have someone come pull it off so he could get the elbow loose (it sticks). So he retreated o a chair near the opposite wall, hopefully far enough to avoid rain. He had been about to go out to a supply shop for more lug nuts, but he'd have to wait out the storm it looked like.

So he closed his eyes, mulling things over. 'So, the crazy old bat down the street was related to Jean Havoc, who was now married to Riza Hawkeye-- Wait, she's Riza Havoc now, isn't she? She certainly causes havoc most of the time.' Ed stretched his arm around his shoulder and yawned. Something about rain made him tired. Of course, fire did the same thing.

'Roy...' Ed shook his head. "Why do I always do that? Anything about fire, flame, spark, frickin barbecue, he shows up."

"And you call me crazy..." Came Gram's voice from the just closed front door.

"You are most certainly crazy." Ed said, slipping effortlessly into Seth. "I, on the contrary, am just a bit...Odd."

"Uh-huh. I'm convinced." She said, walking over. "It's going to rain."

"Glad to know you have the ability to see grey." Ed mumbled, promptly smacked by the cane.

"You and I are in the same boat, and you know it." She said, sitting in a chair juxtaposed to Ed's. "You can't move your arm when it rains, and my knees act up."

"Yes, yes." Ed muttered.

"...Am I going to have to pry it out of you?"

Ed glanced at her. "You're cheating."

She laughed warmly. "How so?"

"That..." Ed paused for a moment, then said, "Old-Lady intuition."

...We will return to this conversation as soon as Ed gets mopped up and Gram stops shouting 'I'm not an old lady'.

"Well, what do _you_ call it, then?" Ed huffed, nursing a lump on his head.

"How about experience?" She said, returning to her chair. "Now, speak or be beat."

Ed swallowed. "It's nothing."

"Name?"

"Nothing."

"Okay." She smirked. "So why is it nothing?"

"Because he's from a long time ago, and he doesn't matter anymore."

Ed's answer hit him hard, a bit too late for him to say otherwise. 'I didn't say that'. But Gram's calculating gaze assured him other wise. So he sat, watching the rain through the window with a vacant look as he contemplated giving her a slightly edited version. So he did.

"A while back, when I was a kid, my brother and I lived with our mother. She died when we were about eleven and ten. A few years later, there...was an accident, and I lost my brother and my limbs. When I was recovering, someone came to me and offered me a chance to walk again, and I took it. I got automail. And I guess they thought I was worth some schooling, because they asked if I wanted to learn a few things. That was when I met my Sensei, and a while after that, I met the only person who meant more to me than my mother and brother."

"...And why doesn't he matter anymore?" A gentle and encouraging nudge.

Ed gave a low bark of laughter. "I finally get the push that made me tell him, and he accepts it, but then...Some things happened, and now I can't see him." He looked at Gram, saying, "You ever get that feeling the world's out to get you?"

"All the time." She said, nodding."You know, on those days when the store closes just as you get there, when it rains like this, and _especially_ when you find yourself getting hit on the head with a randomly thrown pineapple, causing you to fall down a hill, through a fence, and into a pile of wood."

Ed blinked. "That explains the cane. Oh, wait," He added suddenly, "Is that why you have a cane, or did the years catch up with you?"

He found himself beat again, and when he decided it was safe enough to put his arms down from his face, he laughed.

"Find something funny?" Gram asked in a deadly voice.

"You remind me of someone." Ed said, thinking of Winry and the murdering accomplice Wrench.

"Good someone?"

"Somewhat. She always tried to kill me, but she was a bit like a sister. My brother and I lived with her for a while after my mom died." Ed smiled, imagining Winry beating up an apprentice who did some of the stupid things Ed did ( like attach a leg to an arm).

"I see. Well, it's pouring outside, so would you throw up some random subject to argue?" She said.

Ed grinned, thankful that she would drop the whole secret-love-from-the-past thing, and volunteered, "You're grandson is going to develop a family complex, very quickly."

**With Roy, Four Months Later (Warning: The rest of this chapter...Will go kinda fast)**

Roy waited. And waited. And waited some more. Then he stood, and left his office and began to hunt reverently for Jean or Riza; They said they had some major news about the case. And that they'd be in Central to deliver the news by noon.

'So where are they?!'

"Hey Boss."

Roy turned to the cocky voice, fixing Jean with a death glare worthy of the grim Reaper himself. "You're late."

Jean stared at him, then asked accusingly, "Boss, how long have you been looking for me?"

"About fifteen minutes."

"...Boss, it's only eleven. I'm an hour early. Did you forget Daylights Savings?"

Roy didn't answer, asking instead, "What do you got for me?"

Jean held out a manila envelope, saying proudly, "A list."

...Roy's mind buzzed for a moment, then realized what Jean meant.

"A list?" He asked incredulously, taking the envelope. "You mean--"

"_The_ list. Of all members of a group called SATH, meaning 'send alchemist to hell'. It's over, Boss."

**With Ed, month and a half later **

Ed glanced about, wondering listlessly if Jean had been lying; Just telling Ed what he wanted to hear. Seemed to be reasonable. Here was Ed, waiting expectantly for something that might not happen, so when one of the only people who know of his existence came along, who wouldn't feel sorry for him, and do their best to cheer him up?

He shook his head suddenly. 'Stop that. Now.'

It seemed as the two year mark of his death rolled around, he started thinking about how improbable it was for him to ever actually go back. After all, who'd believe him if he claimed he was Edward Elric, the deceased Fullmetal Alchemist? No one. Then there's the infamous 'I'm taking up Roy's life for no reason' excuse. Why should Roy spend his life looking for Ed's? But if Ed really died...

But he didn't want to give up. He wanted to see Al and Winry again, he wanted to meet the second Maes, and, most of all, he wanted a home again; No matter how well he had adjusted, Ed would never be able to totally relax here, or try and fall in love with someone else, because...It hurt too much to be close to someone who didn't know who you were. So he waited.

And waited. And waited some more. But today, the thoughts stayed behind, even as the logic faded away. 'I want out.' Ed looked around quickly, the selected a fine pile of steel and iron alloys and deftly transmuted it into a handgun. One bullet. One chance. 'I won't need it.' He tried to convince himself. Still, he slept deeper than before that night, subconsciously knowing if he had _the dream_ again, he might just use that bullet.

**With Roy, A week later**

"Eyes out." Roy muttered, as his team dispersed to their positions.

It had been a hectic week, mainly because Roy wasn't content to just quietly arrest the remaining members. And thus, his team of three (Riza, Jean, and himself) were now in Lior, and the only thing that remained was to follow the plan, which was:

_One: Jean separates first and causes some trouble; His choice; Riza may assist._

Jean immediately walked over to a small floral booth and smiled charmingly at the clerk (You know, with that smile he'd seen Roy use so many times and oh so effectively).

"How long have you worked here, hon?"

She blushed. "A little over a year."

"Really? Any particular reason you haven't found some nice man to take care of you?" He said, leaning a bit closer to here, yet keeping his voice at the same volume.

She shook her head, fixing her eyes on the counter in front of her.

Jean watched her, smirking, then reached out and gently brushed her face. "Maybe if you'd look up, you'd see what you're missing."

SLAP!!

"JEAN HAVOC YOU CHEATING BASTARD!!!"

Roy nodded, reasoning this was a very good distraction.

_Two: Conveniently get lost and wander off._

Roy didn't need help, as the crowd moved forward to encircle the now verbally battling couple, and he found himself trying to hold his ground, only to end up a few blocks away from where he had started.

_Three: Get noticed...Negatively._

'Well...Only one way to do that...'


	9. Chapter 9

Ed woke up the next morning, tired and cold. The rain hadn't let up, and it didn't look like it was going to. The sky was grey and bleary, making everything seem worse than it was.

The gun.

_Pathetic._ Just what Roy would say, if he knew Ed wanted to take the easy way out. Ed smirked bitterly. A moment of weakness, nothing more.

He walked over to the table, where the gun sat since the night before. He handled it carefully, before, de-transmuting it, leaving it as a pile of nuts and bolts.

_Knock knock_

"Yes?" He called,walking to the front door.

It opened, revealing Gram. "Having a fun time with this rain?" She asked bitterly.

He rolled his eyes. "You should talk, walking around in it."

She cackled, saying, "Ah, I'm tough."

"I'll say." Ed muttered, and regretted it as the cane smashed down on his back.

**With Roy**

_Well, step three's a success. _

Roy was now sitting, awkwardly, tied with his hands behind his back, and watched as his gloves (last pair, too) were shredded before him. He was on his knees, looking out at a, while a bit scruffy, impressive group. A large group of people had assembled, to watch the killing of the man behind their problems-- Roy, apparently.

"Intimidating, isn't it?"

Roy looked to his left, seeing a man that can only be described as a sleazy car salesman. His dark brown hair was slicked back, revealing a muscular face, which was turned out to face the crowd.

Roy said nothing, his eyes narrowed in distrust.

"You are quite stubborn, Mr. Mustang. One would assume, after the death of your protege Elric, and the attempt on Mr. Armstrong, that you would have fled for safety." He chuckled, turning to Roy with dull, glassy grey eyes.

"But no, you insist on coming to stick you own nose into our business-- granted, it makes it easier for us." He said, gesturing out to the group, that had fallen silent as he began to speak. "Seems the training the military puts their mutts through transfers from one power to the next, eh?"

Roy continued his silence.

A knife was pulled from the air, and the voice continued, "Well, I am gladdened to say this ends here, Mustang-- or were you expecting one of those long and aggravating speeches for you to use to make an escape?"

He stepped over to Roy, amid cheers from the crowd. "We win, Roy."

!**BANG**!

**With Ed, much later (like, a week-ish)**

A knock sounded from the recently heavy feeling door roused Ed from the couch. He stood with a slight groan, and he opened it slowly, and was only slightly surprised when Jean grinned down at him.

"Ah, Mr. Havoc. To what do I owe the honor?" Ed motioned him in.

Jean stepped in, grinning still. "We did it."

Ed's brow furrowed in confusion. "I'm afraid I don't understand, Mr. Havoc--"

"Ed, we did it!" Jean said again, startling the younger blonde.

"Jean, what the hell do you mean?" Ed asked furiously, hoping what ever gave Jean the confidence to blow Ed's cover would keep him alive.

Jean sat at the table, flopping a newspaper down. " Read all about it: 'Fullmetal Assassin Exposes Crime Ring'! "

Ed's eyes widened, picking up the paper, scanning it frantically. "You can't be serious."

Jean laughed. "You think I'd risk Riza's gun to come here and lie to you?"

Ed looked at him, his eyes dancing while his face showed disbelief. "Still, what makes you so sure that it's over?"

"Because, Roy's an idiot and made himself human bait and put himself in a reckless position to be sure he got a hold of the leader, " Jean said, smirking, "Then we surrounded him and trapped the entire group of the involved. None denied the claims, and all are in prison, or possibly worse, I'm not sure,I wasn't paying attention."

Ed just stared at him.

"What? It's true." Jean said defensively.

He looked Ed up and down, trying to decide what was making Ed difficult. He noticed that Ed seemed pale, and his eyes were listless and glassy, as i he was sick. Ed was wearing a sky blue tee, leaving his arms bare, one of which Jean noticed looked shaky, then he saw something truly worrisome.

"Ed, what's all over your arm?"

Ed glanced at his left arm, then sighed. "Might as well not bother hiding." He laid it flat on the table.

Jean hissed. There were cuts, all up and down it, in various stages of healing. He reached across, running his finger tips gently over them, inspecting. Some were scarring over, some were so fresh they hadn't even started scabbing. And some--

"This one looks..."

Ed looked at it, then said dully, "I thought I was losing too much blood, so I tried heating my blade, then cut. It hurt a lot more, but it blistered over, so I lost less blood."

Jean looked up at him, his face concerned, but his eyes angry. It flowed over into his voice when he asked, "Ed, what were you thinking? Why would--"

"Hmm, I guess I was a bit selfish. And impatient, that too." Ed said calculatingly.

"You idiot!" Jean said, standing. "What about your brother? What about Winry, what about Roy?"

Ed scoffed bitterly. "Come now, Jean, if you were me, do you really believe that I'd ever go home?"

"Yeah. Because if I were you, you'd be me." Jean said patronizingly. "And I'd know you do the most you could to get the people you killed me off the streets so I could!"

Ed rolled his eyes. "I'm sure. Alright, let's get this strait," He continued, sounding like Ed now. "You could sit here, for two years, with no contact, and believe that you would go home?"

Jean growled. When Ed said it like that, it did sound depressing. "That's no excuse!"

Ed glared. "I'm not expecting it to be." He glanced to his right, his desk. "I almost used a gun, get out that way. Gram would come over, find me, and tell you next time you spoke. Roy would grieve a bit, then get over it."

Jean just shook his head is disbelief.

"But I realized that would be too easy, knowing, even if he wasn't anymore, Roy had done a lot for me,and it wouldn't be fair to make him suffer for nothing. But I waned to suffer, punishment for leaving him confused, and thinking it was his fault I got shot. Cause I know he does." Ed smiled bitterly. "Equivalent Exchange."

"I..." Jean sighed. "I can't say I don't blame you, cause I know you know better than that. But I guess it's something you'll have to figure out for yourself."

Ed nodded.

Jean looked at him, incredulous. Then he smirked. "Meanwhile, I'm sure Al would like to know you're alive, since the media hasn't been informed. How long do You need to pack?"

Ed smiled-- a true smile. "Five minutes. Tops."

* * *

!! I do not mean to offend anyone if they and/or a friend/relative is a car sales person, sleazy or other wise. If it helps makes you feel better, think of this guy as a person who gives you and/or your friend/relative a bad name !! 

Also, this was not at all how I had this chapter going to begin with. But it was a little cliché, and so you got this. Much more original, less dramatic. But more characteristic. Ed knows better.


	10. Author's Note Might as well read it!

Hey everyone!! If you haven't read chapter nine yet, go back and read it now!! Just warning you.

Now then, I just wanted to say sorry for all the mistakes I've made, and the last minute change in the plot (about Ed's placement, ya know). If I continue to make mistakes, please point them out!! I had two people point out penicillin is not a pain killer (thank you!!) and was saved from a semi-chiche moment. So, before I continue with this fic, I just wanted to say thanks for all the support and help, I'm glad this fic is so popular!

Originally, my idea for this came from my plan to write out several page long entries throughout Roy and Ed's relationship, from start to end-- well, not end, since I don't know if it will. But anywhoo, in that idea, Ed did get shot, and though that whole scene was quite different, but nothing ever stays the same in my mind. I change things when I decide I like them.

Speaking of changing, I know I promised a non-yaoi version of this, and I apologize for not writing it yet. I am afraid that I don't think I can. And so, if any of you lovely readers wants to take the plot and give it some artistic lee-way and de-yaoi-fye it, just tell me, and I won't put up a fuss. I'd like to read it, too. First one to ask gets it!!! Review to tell me, though, it boosts my confidence

Meanwhile, enough of me ranting. I have up to chapter twelve written, so I'll update on the next couple Saturdays, since I'm starting school next week. Wish me luck!! First year of highschool in a new state, and a hot one at that! I'm gonna pass out in class, I just know it. But you don't care. You want me to shut up and update soon. I will, promise!

Once again, arigatou and ashikarazu. Thank you and I'm sorry!! Enjoy!!

私はあなたについて書いてうれしいです！


	11. Chapter 10

**Chapter Ten**

**A Few Hours Later (It's about nine o' clock now)**

"You are going to see him, right?"

Ed glanced at Jean, knowing exactly who 'he' was. "Maybe. Right now, I need to see my brother."

Jean nodded, driving slowly. "He's in the hospital right now. Nothing serious, but more serious than he wanted to believe. He was ready to come get you, but the doctors wouldn't let him."

Ed smiled softly. "I suppose he didn't take that well?"

Jean laughed. "To quote directly, 'what's a couple of broken ribs, more or less? I'm fine!' They had to put him in a chemically induced coma until I picked you up."

"Will he be awake when you get to Central?"

Jean nodded, "They pulled him back after I got to Caros, said that Roy's not so stupid as to order me to come back without you just so he could get you."

He thought for a moment, then added, " I guess he'll be back in his office, now that I think of it."

Ed chuckled softly, feeling the fatigue from the past few sleepless nights. "How much longer til we hit Risembul?"

"According to that sign," Jean said amusedly, "We'll be hitting it if I don't turn right now."

Ed blinked, realizing Jean was right. There was the general store, the pub...Risembul...

"Hey, isn't that Mr. Havoc? Who's that with him?"

Ed followed he voices, recognizing some of his friends from grade school, and suddenly, he was _much_ more tired that he thought. Too much, too fast.

Jean glanced at him, then smirked. "We'll be at Al's soon."

**La la la la la...Oh, wait, you're still reading? Then I'll keep writing!**

Al let out a slow breath. Back at the river, at the bridge he and Ed used to play when they were kids. Many, many years ago.

"I can still remember the day we built this. We had to ask Pinako to help, since Mom didn't want us to nail our hands down. Winry kept asking us why we were building it, but we wouldn't tell her. Mainly because it was for her. It was almost a year before she took swimming lessons, so whenever we wanted to go across this river, we had to go all the way down to the crossroads. We finally finished it, and Winry was the first one to stand on it."

He smiled softly, remembering how, when he and Ed had joined her, she had pushed them both off and laughed when Ed came up with a fish on his head.

He turned suddenly, hearing a car approach, something surprising as the bridge was in the middle of no where. Even more surprising when it stopped right next to the bridge, and Jean Havoc smirked at him from the driver's side. Someone got out, walking towards him.

"Can I help you?" Al asked politely, thinking maybe they were lost.

"I'm looking for someone, I think you can help me.." Came a tired voice from a shadowed face, due to medium length black hair. He walked towards Al, then turned and looked at the river.

"I'll try." Al said cautiously. "Who are you looking for?"

"My little brother." The voice said, looking towards him.

At first Al was confused, then he saw golden eyes. The pair that had laughed with him when Winry didn't get her answer, the pair that glared when Winry laughed, and the pair he never thought he'd see again.

"Ed...?"

"Hey Al." Ed replied with a smile.

Al walked over to Ed, blinking emotionless, then he punched Ed in the jaw.

"OW! YOU BASTARD, WHAT'D YOU DO THAT FOR?"

"Wanted to make sure I wasn't imagining things." Al said, walking over to where Ed was now on the ground. He helped him stand, saying, "Unless we're both dead. Are we?"

"NO!" Ed said gruffly, nursing his jaw.

He looked over to Al with a look of frustration and confusion. Only to be met with Al's smile and tear filled eyes.

"Brother...What happened to you?"

Ed blinked, then smiled as well. "It's kinda a long story, but I can shorten it."

Al nodded, not sure what to say to his (dead) brother.

Ed waited a moment, then rolled his eyes. "We're both idiots." Then embraced Al in a crushing hug.

"So you were at the funeral?"

"Yeah." Ed said softly.

He and Al were now leaning against a pair of trees near the river. As one tends to do when one cries, they were tired.

Suddenly Al smiled, asking wryly, "Ever think I'd get the chance to ask you if you went to you're own funeral?"

Ed smiled then added, "Well, usually, you make sure a person's at their own funeral, or there'd be no point."

Al nodded, then asked, "When are you going back to Central?"

Ed flushed suddenly, saying defensively, " What makes you think I'm going back?"

Al gave him the look; You know, the 'try denying it, you know I'm right' look.

Ed sighed, saying, "Probably when Jean goes. Just for a while, though. I'm coming back to see everyone. Right now, you're the only one who knows."

Al smiled, saying, "Well, hope it works out for you there." Pause, then, "Are you going to move back to Risembul?"

Ed thought a moment, then said, "I think I'm going to stay in Caros."

Al glanced at him, then his eyes softened. "Too close to being home now?"

"Something like that." Ed replied, glad Al understood. "I was always afraid to get too close to anyone, I might let it slip who I really was. I couldn't even think about seeing anyone for-- numerous reasons, but mainly because I didn't want to have to deal with someone I cared about calling me something else. It's passed, though. I can tell everyone that I've basically lied to for the last two years."

"It wasn't your fault. I'm sure they'll understand." Al said, his voice only slightly sarcastic.

Ed smirked, saying, "Hope so."

"Here comes Jean."Al said suddenly.

"I know. I heard him a bit ago--" Ed's eyes widened slight, then he turned to Al. "You're paranoid too, aren't you?"

"It's not paranoia if they're really out to get you." Al said seriously.

Then they both burst out laughing.

Ed left with Jean that night, off to confront Roy. With a promise to return in five days or less, Ed waved good-bye to his younger brother.

As Al watched him drive off, he pulled out his cell.

"Winry? Remember the old bridge Ed and I built?


	12. Chapter 11

**Chapter Eleven**

**In Central Military Building**

Off to confront Roy sounded easier in his head, Ed realized.

He was going up the steps to the Main Office in Central, urging himself not to resort to child-isms and grab onto Jean's coat from nerves. No one had noticed him so far, or if they did, no one recognized him. Good. Not that he'd be that lucky when he got closer to Roy's office. Of course not, Riza would know it was him, do something blatantly obvious to alert everyone else, who would also do some blatantly obvious to alert the entire country.

Great.

But he could handle this, he told himself. Just the average raised from the dead. Not anything new, right? After all, Ross came back, and she's okay. Got married and everything. Sure. He could handle this.

Upon reaching this conclusion, he promptly forgot it as Hayate, now (for lack of other words) huge, barked and jumped on him, knocking him to the floor. Gotta love dogs.

"...GET OFF ME, MUTT!"

And suddenly, everyone knew Ed was back... Wonder how...

After a few cries of 'ghost' and 'impostor', Ed got dragged (by Jean, of course) to an elevator, and quickly hit the _close doors _button and the floor number. Then he sighed heavily, glancing at Jean.

"Thanks for the help." He said sarcastically, referring to the fact that Jean had stood by for the first few minutes laughing and, of course, smoking.

"Not at all." Jean said with a smirk. "Ready for the real fun?"

Ed blinked at him for a moment, then groaned. "Please tell me you're kidding."

"Not really." Jean said, holding up his cell phone. "You see, while you were informing your brother, I was informing the people here, and they're all very excited."

"Great."

So when the elevator doors opened, Ed was caught in a world-famous Armstrong/Artistic hug, that had been passed down generation to generation and so on and so forth. Pink sparkles and waterfall tears included.

Then there was Fuery, looking utterly confused at the whole idea (he apparently had not been informed).

Ross (Brosh? Ross? What's her surname now?) decided Ed hadn't learned the first time, and he was slapped for getting himself seriously wounded. Not to mention dying. That didn't help.

And so the greetings continued, until finally, Ed ended up at a pair of doors. With Ms. Riza smirking in front of them, one hand on the knob.

Ed swallowed. Then nodded, walking forwards. Riza opened the door, stepping back. Ed took a deep breath, but didn't pause, just kept walking.

There, at the desk. Roy sat, his head down in his arms, peacefully breathing. Ed's voice caught in his throat, as he tried to think of what to say. Two years seemed so long now, and--

The door shut behind him. Roy looked up.

Ed swallowed again, saying, "Hey."

Roy looked at him, then replied, "Hey."

It was a stiff reply, and suddenly, the air in the room dropped. Something felt...off about it. 'The tone' Ed realized with confusion. It wasn't the right tone, it was almost...sarcasm.

Ed must've looked confused, because Roy gave him a 'think for a moment' look. He put one and six together.

"So Jean told you about it, did he?" He asked dryly.

Roy smirked bitterly. "That's one way to put it."

Ed rolled his eyes. "Dammit Jean."

He looked at Roy, who had narrowed his eyes in...scorn?

Ed sighed, then said softly, "I just didn't want you to waste you life for me."

Roy's eyes hardened. He stood, walking deliberately over to Ed. He pulled his left arm up, with no objections from Ed. Slowly he rolled the sleeve back, with a look of hatred at the cuts.

"No, you thought you'd waste your own, right?"

Ed flushed, pulling his arm away. "Considering I had no idea what was going on, I thought it was the best thing to do."

Roy's eyes glinted angrily and confused. "What made you decided that, besides an abundance of self-pity and boredom?"

"Oh, so you think I'd sat down one day and thought, 'Hm, I'm bored. Oh! I wonder if drawing a blade across my wrist would hurt!' Yup, that's me!" Ed yelled.

Roy scoffed. "Got any better excuse?"

Ed started to shake. "You have _no idea_ what it's like, having nothing to do, staring over your shoulder ever minute, because there could be someone out there, in the house next to you, plotting your death."

Roy looked surprised, but Ed continued,

"Or going to sleep at night, then waking up suffocating, because all you can dream about is a thin ally with no one around except a man with a gun and a strong arm."

Ed glared at Roy, and it seemed like he was crying, but there weren't any tears...

"And I seriously doubt you've ever sat in bed at night, gasping for air, thinking about how you might as well just end it, how all the people you care about would be better running their own life, instead of trying to get rid of the people who took away yours."

He paused, then added, "I always wondered if you hadn't just given up anyways."

Ed was clearly shaking now, in rage or in grief. His eyes reflected betrayal, but he wasn't crying

"How's that for an excuse, General Bastard?"

And he left. Turned on his heel, taking a side exit to avoid the crowd, and leaving Roy very confused, angry, and overall a bit lost about what just happened.

----

Ed walked away from the building, having no real reason to stay no. He didn't stop until he somehow found himself at the train station with a ticket in his hand._Risembul. _Okay, time to head home.

* * *

So...yeah. Suckiest chapter ever to suck the sucker, eh? But there's nothing I can add, except: 

DON'T KILL ME IT GETS BETTER!!!! HONEST!!


	13. Chapter 12

**Chapter Twelve**

**In Risembul, the Next Morning**

Ed walked up to _Rockbell Mechanics_, looking around in mild interest.

'Mild interest? That's the best you got, after being dead for two years?'

He laughed softly. "Gotta stop yelling at myself."

He looked down as something touched his hand. Den, the ever faithful watchdog, now creaking with old age, gave him a dog-ish grin.

"Glad you remember me." He said, going to the door and knocking.

Winry opened the door, took one glance, and shut it again.

'Great, she's mad at me.' Ed thought, knocking again.

Winry came back, then said, "We're closed."

Before she could shut the door again, Ed shoved his foot (the automail one) in the way, allowing a few inches visibility into the house.

"Winry, look, it wasn't my fault. Just let me in and I'll-- "

"One, I have no idea who you are, so I will not let you in," She said, masking obvious anger, "And two, I have no intention of letting a lying, reckless idiot that can't walk down a street without getting shot in my house."

Suddenly a wrench came out of no where and hit Ed in the face, causing him to fall backwards.

Winry shut the door without a word.

"Ouch..." Ed rubbed his head, think Al must've spent too much time with Winry (you noticed they both hit him practically on site), then stood back up, and yelled, "ALPHONSE ELRIC, I NEED HELP!!!"

A moment later, Al opened the door, smirking. "You knew this would happen, right?"

"Yup," He replied, grinning, "I die for two years, and suddenly she thinks I'm dead."

Al laughed. "C'mon, I think she's having a bit of a break down right now."

They proceeded into the shop, and found Winry digging through a pile of boxes, muttering things under her breath like 'that idiot' and 'the things I do'...

"Winry are you--" Ed began.

She stood up, smiling triumphantly, and holding a box. "Knew I had it here somewhere."

She opened the box and held it out to Ed.

He glanced from the box back to her. "Is it something dangerous?"

She rolled her eyes. "No, it's not something dangerous. But you can't pretend to be Ed without it."

He seemed confused, but took the box.

His jacket. Red, full-length, and with a crucified serpent on the back in black. His favorite jacket.

"How did you get it?" He asked, pulling it out of the box. "And in one piece, the hospital--"

"I made this one." She said softly. "Every time you guys were here, there'd be a new hole or tear in the jacket, so while no one was looking, I'd replace it with a different one I made in my spare time."

"...And I never noticed..." He said, looking between her and the jacket.

"I didn't expect you to get in as much trouble any more, since we got Al back," She continued, " And since the only time you traveled anymore you had to wear your military uniform, I thought you wouldn't need any extras, so I didn't make one. But..."

She faltered, then said, "After the funeral, I couldn't stop, sit down, and start anything new, so I just started making a new one, without even realizing it."

Ed smiled, "Glad you did."

And suddenly Winry was crying, and then of course went fan-girl and glomped Ed until he turned all blue and swirly eyed from lack of oxygen. Only then did Al rescue him. So much for brotherly love, eh?

Upon being rescued, Winry disabled and removed Ed's arm.

"I want to see how you kept it running." She said, disappearing to her workshop.

"...You know," Ed said, turning to Al, "I really do think she hates me sometimes."

Al laughed, then nodded. "Only sometimes, though."

They walked into the kitchen, where Al also made the discovery of Ed's new-found 'tolerance' of milk, as he put it. Then Al muttered about how that explained why Ed was basically taller than him now, if only by half an inch, where Ed explained (violently of course) that no, he was taller because he was older dammit.

After Al finished laughing and Ed calmed down, Ed was watching Al drink his coffee when he asked rather suddenly, "So when are you two getting married?"

sputtercoughsputter "What are you talking about? Who said we were getting married?" Al asked,his face red and looking confused.

"You and Winry." Ed replied simply. "Hasn't anyone told you? It's rather obvious." He said the last while raising his own cup, peering over the rim calculatingly.

Al glared back, then sighed. "I haven't asked her yet. I keep thinking about it, but when I finally start to, I get nervous."

Ed smirked, setting down his cup. "Never one for confrontation, were you?"

Al gave him the 'oh shut up' look, then continued, "Well, what'll you have me do?"

"Hmm, let me think; Ask her?" Ed said sarcastically.

Al scoffed, "Easy for you to say, you--"

"I'll ask her for you." Ed said amusedly.

"YEAH RIGHT!"

"Yeah right what?" Winry asked, walking in with Ed's arm.

...awkwardsilence...

"Nothing." Al said, walking away.

The remaining two watched him leave, then Ed sighed.

"Was he always that moody?" He muttered.

"Just recently." Winry said, walking over to reattach the arm. "It seems like he wants to say something, but he just says 'nothing' and walks away."

Ed nodded, then said, "Do you like him?"

Winry said nothing, but nodded slowly.

"Do you love him?"

Silence, save for the mechanical click of the automail.

"So that's a yes?" Ed added, flexing his fingers.

"It might be." She said stiffly. "Why does it matter to you?"

Ed just shrugged, walking towards the door. "I'm gonna go for a walk."

When he reached the door, he turned and gave he a strange look. It was almost scolding, almost empathetic, but mostly regret. "He loves you. You know that, right?"

Then he left.

He walked around his hometown, stopping by a few old friends, who then proceeded to either _a_) act very man-ish and complained about how he just goes off and acts dead or _b_) act a bit more at ease and asked why he acted dead for two years. Either way, the explanations lasted a while.

When he finally started home, it was well past ten, so he was surprised to see the house lit up. Even more surprised when he first encountered a group of giggling girls walking towards the house, then met Al walking away, smirking slightly.

"What's going on?"

Al looked at him, then grinned broadly. "I'll give you two guesses."

* * *

Yay!! Be warned, the next chapter might be a bit late, I seem to e having a problem getting it started. Hope you enjoyed this chapter! 


	14. Chapter 13

**Le gasp! I actually wrote it!! ON TIME!!!**

**Um...This should be the last chapter... I think... Oh, another 'le gasp' moment, this chapter is more Roy-POV-oriented. Just sos ya now.**

**Ed may be a little OOC, there's your warning. Don't worry, it's not like his semi-emo-ness episode, just... It's odd, trust me...**

**MOVING ON!!**

**Around a Year and a Half Later...**

Done. It was finished. The vows were read, the rings exchanged, and the cake was cut. Al and Winry, husband and wife, and leaving on a two week trip to Xing.

Leaving the wedding party to clean up the mess from the reception.

Which of course they were only too happy to do (thanks to Riza's -er- encouragement).

Jean was stacking dishes into dangerous piles, one of which was bound to fall at any moment, and Maria, Riza, and Sciezska were separating the foods into containers for later consumption. Edward seemed content to do dishes without too much complaint, except when Jean deposited a large stack noisily.

Roy observed all this while his own task of trash disposal hehe, fire burn garbage.

To be fair to the elder alchemist, he hadn't attempted to talk to Ed. It was somewhat of an instinct to stay away from the younger, as well as the subject of their last meeting. Of course, Ed had been avoiding him, but isn't that enough of a warning to let it drop?

Roy sighed, shaking his head. _I need to talk to him. _

With a last snap, he finished his assigned task and walked towards Ed.

"Evening Lieutenant General Mustang." Came the cool greeting.

Roy struggled not to roll his eyes. It seemed that since he'd gotten here, the only way Ed addressed him was by his title.

He pulled off his gloves, saying, "Mind if I join you?"

Ed glanced at him out of the corner of his eye. "Would it matter if I said yes?"

Roy moved over to begin drying dishes, adding in a low tone, "I don't think so, Colonel."

Silence settled over the pair, before Roy sighed. "Ed--"

"Is there something you need, Lieutenant General?" Ed asked stiffly.

Looking at the other out of the corner of his eye, he replied, "I want to talk, Ed."

"Well," The younger turned slightly, looking him in the eye, "I guess we'll talk about it later, Roy, if you think we have to."

He returned to his task, albeit a bit more forcefully than he probably needed to scrub.

Roy smirked slight, drying the dishes docilely say that three times fast_. He used my first name._

Then Jean dropped the dishes into a dish of salad remains.

**Now tell me, how many of you actually said it three times fast, or tried?**

Roy watched Riza and Jean drive off, sighing in apprehension. It was just Ed and himself now, no distractions, no excuses. And right then, he just wanted to get in his car and drive home.

He shook his head, walking towards the house, seeing Ed leaning against the doorway waiting for him.

"You take your coffee with two sugars right?"

Roy blinked, bemused. "Yes... When did you--"

Ed smirked bitterly. "You forget, I did work in Central under you for a while."

"Oh." The elder alchemist nodded, swallowing sub-consciously. "Right."

Ed turned, walking into the house. Roy followed, a bit tentatively.

Watching the other move around the mid-sized kitchen, he thought about the changes Ed had gone through.

He had grown a fair deal, standing nearly eye-level with the older alchemist. This, of course, made it pointless to call him 'shrimp', but he had been given the nick-name 'Skunk' by Jean and some of his other acquaintances. The -ahem- hair dye was permanent.

That, dear friends, was the _only_ reason I dyed Ed's hair.

The most noticeable change in Ed, though, was his demeanor. He seemed less cocky, more mature (though he did have relapses). He seemed more relaxed, ready to settle his life. As Al had pointed out in a letter to Roy a few months ago, Ed had tasted normality when he lived in Caros, and had decided he liked it

Ed held out a cup to Roy, his face set in a business like openness. "So why do you think we need to talk, and what about?"

He resisted the urge to say 'you know what'. He just watched a moment as the other turned to make his own coffee.

"If I remember right, I think you described it as 'complicated' a long time ago."

Ed paused before saying, "That's one way to put it."

He returned the milk to the fridge (making Roy wonder when he'd gotten it out), then turned to face him, leaning against the counter.

"Complicated might not be the right term anymore, though." He said slowly, as if tasting the words. "Yeah, it isn't any less confusing than before, it's just a different complication now."

Roy nodded, waiting for him to continue.

Ed stared at him for a moment, then ran a hand through his hair. "I don't know, Roy. I can't say I don't feel that way anymore, and I can't say I do. It's just," He glanced at the older, before finishing, "I don't know anymore, I wish I hadn't kissed you in the first place."

Roy blinked, saying in a slightly incredulous voice, "You think that would have changed anything?"

Ed was looking intently at the air over Roy's shoulder, his reply soft. "Wouldn't it?"

Shaking his head, Roy took a sip of his cooling drink before saying, "I guess I don't know either."

He met Ed's eye, seeing an understanding there.

"So what happens now?" He asked, setting down his mug. "Any idea where we go from here?"

Roy chuckled lightly. "No. I..."

He looked at Ed again, then recognized something else in the others' eyes. Distrust, fear. He sighed.

"The only thing we can do is go on." He said finally. "What happened is done, and whatever will be will be."

Ed nodded. "Okay."

**FIN**

**Wow, it's finished!! I'm so proud of me!! **

**Anyhow, I'm sure I'll get at least one person unhappy, because there's no definite happy ending, but in my defense, the way I originally had this in my head, there was!! Then again, this whole last chapter was a lot different. **

**So, I might -MIGHT- post an alternate ending chapter some day.**

**You know, there are a lot of happy-ending-fics (which I love dearly), but I always felt like since there isn't always a happy ending, I wanted to try and write something without one. Except a lot of stories without happy endings mean someone died, and I didn't want that.**

**I digress. Please review, I'd like to know how I did! Be kind, please, this is my first yaoi fic, and again I apologize for not writing the non-yaoi version. I'm going to send the plot to littlefiction, and the Adopt-A-Plot center, which is found here:**

**http:// www. fanfiction. net/ littlefiction **

**(take out the spaces!)**

**See ya!**


	15. Chapter 13 Again!

**And here I am - For any of you who found this alert in you inbox and came to check it out, thanks; I decided to finally write this alternate ending, since Ed and Roy pretty much enjoyed the other ending and I like having them mad at me... Yeah, that makes no sense. ANYWAYS, let's move along. The first bit of this will seem a little familiar.**

**Around a Year and a Half Later...**

Done. It was finished. The vows were read, the rings exchanged, and the cake was cut. Al and Winry, husband and wife, and leaving on a two week trip to Xing.

Leaving the wedding party to clean up the mess from the reception. Which of course they were only too happy to do (thanks to Riza's -er- encouragement). Jean was stacking dishes into dangerous piles, one of which was bound to fall at any moment, and Maria, Riza, and Sciezska were separating the foods into containers for later consumption. Edward seemed content to do dishes without too much complaint, except when Jean deposited a large stack noisily.

Roy observed all this while his own task of trash disposal, manually, since Riza insisted that nothing be burned.

To be fair to the elder alchemist, he hadn't attempted to talk to Ed. It was somewhat of an instinct to stay away from the younger, as well as the subject of their last meeting. Of course, Ed had been avoiding him, but isn't that enough of a warning to let it drop? Still, the two, when forced to interact, were civil and managed to convey to the people around them that the status between them was professional. It was especially trying when both of them, along with Jean, were in the wedding party. But they managed. And since they were professional, Ed seemed to refuse to remember Roy's first name, instead addressing him calmly as 'Lieutenant General Mustang'. Roy had responded in kind, calling Ed 'Colonel' most commonly.

Which rather annoyed Roy. Something about the last time he'd seen Ed was poking at him. What exactly had happened? Who said what that started it? Without an answer, Roy couldn't very well try and figure out what he should do. Something, obviously, since nothing just seemed to result in everything in a mess.

Suddenly a loud crash startled him out of his thoughts. Apparently, one pile of dishes was stacked too high and tipped. Ed was standing over the pieces dining utensils, wondering aloud why they didn't use disposable dinnerware in the first place.

Throwing the last bag of trash onto the pile, Roy walked over to the younger, asking, "Can you handle this, Colonel?

"Yes, Lieutenant General." Was the cool response, as Ed surveyed the damage before deftly repairing it with alchemy.

Roy rolled his eyes, catching site of the over cast sky. It had turned a bit grey half-way through the reception, worrying some. But it had held out so far, though it didn't look like it intended to continue in such a path. Finishing their individual tasks quickly, the remaining people began to leave at their separate times.

Until only Roy and Ed remained. That's when Roy's car decided to die.

"Dammit." Roy muttered, lifting the hood.

His one weakness, cars. Couldn't make heads or tails of them. He understood breaks and oil, tires and gas-lines. But when it suddenly up-and-quits, it confounded him. He check all the obvious areas, to no avail. So, with the thunder grumbling above him ominously, he began poking and prodding at anything that could go wrong. Not the smartest of ideas, but in the present situation, he didn't exactly have anything else in mind to do.

"Well, this is interesting."

Roy almost started when Ed's voice drifted from beside him. The younger was peering intently at the engine, as though it was a particularly challenging puzzle.

"Any idea what's broken?" He continued, not looking at Roy.

With a shake of his head, the elder responded, "No, I can't figure it out."

"Well," Ed muttered, reaching into the mass of machinery, "What does this go to?"

Held between his fingers was a single wire, completely unattached from the rest of the car.

"...Nope."

"And that means you're stuck," Ed decided, "Since I don't know, and the only person in Risembul who could tell us is on her honeymoon."

Roy sighed. "Great."

Ed stared at him for a moment, then turned on his heel, walking towards the house. He was half way there when he glanced back, seeing that Roy hadn't moved.

"Are you coming or not?"

A few bemused blinks, and Roy followed.

--

_Why was it so crowded? It felt early, just barely morning. Just like it always did._

_I was walking, increasing my pace rapidly. I had to get out of there. I knew every building, I knew what would happen. But Roy..._

_His building was right there. I tried to turn, but the crowded street pushed me forward._

_Smoke filled out of the alley, suffocating me. Tried to scream, tried to call help, but the empty streets gave no reply._

_I couldn't move. I couldn't breathe. I was--_

"It's alright, Ed."

The young blonde's eyes snapped open, his breathing harsh and quick. A moment of realization put him in his room, hours after the rain had started. In his bed.

He sighed. 'Another nightmare.'

That's when he realized the voice was also in his room.

Roy was seated behind him, holding him. An arm around the younger's waist, a hand at his shoulder.

"What are you--?"

"You were thrashing in your sleep." Roy interjected in a low voice. "I couldn't wake you up."

The elder expected something, some kind of retaliation and reprimand. Instead, Ed leaned back against him for a moment, regaining his breathing.

"Are you--?"

This time Ed cut him off with, "I'm fine, just a... a flashback."

Ed was pulling away now, rubbing his eyes listlessly. With a half-sheepish grin, he muttered, "Did I wake you up?"

"Hardly." Roy returned, "It was Den, he had one of my shoes. I went after it and passed your room."

"Stupid mutt." Ed muttered.

Roy was studying the other cautiously. "Ed, are you sure your...?"

Ed sighed at the trailing question. "I'm fine, you should head back to sleep."

Roy was settled back on the old couch a few moments later. Something wasn't sitting right with him. Yeah, it could have been a flash-back. Hell, there were plenty of instances in Ed's life that could give someone a turn upon memory. But...

'He wasn't breathing.' Roy thought to himself. 'Was it a nightmare about...'

_... sat in bed at night, gasping for air, thinking about how you might as well just end it...!_

Roy groaned, muttering under his breath, "That lying idiot."

Thmp.

He glanced at the ceiling, confused.

thmp-Thmp-thmp-Thmp.

'He's pacing.' Roy realized.

It made sense, really. A loud thump from his automail, a softer one from his right leg. Around in a circle, pausing at either end of the room. Roy found himself drawn into following it, endlessly, before he sighed and stood. Now or never.

He walked back up the stairs, his heart beating irregularly. That must have been something akin to adrenaline, since he _knew_ it was stupid to go talk to Ed right now. But he went anyways, also knowing neither of them would get any sleep otherwise.

Pausing to listen at the door, Roy could still hear the dull _thmp_ of the younger's footsteps on the floor. Rather than risk death versus injury, he knocked.

Ed opened the door, looking confused. "You're still up?"

"So are you." Roy quipped.

To which the younger muttered, "Yeah, I noticed," while walking away from the door.

"Any reason why?" Roy asked, leaning casually against the door frame.

Ed remarked, "As if you don't know."

It wasn't cruel, wasn't sneering. Just truthful. Roy watched as Ed settled in the bay window, staring over the flat landscape of Risembul.

"So then I was right" Roy continued quietly. "It was about the shooting."

A small scoff. "Yeah, that's it."

"But you're fine." The elder added with slight sarcasm.

Ed glared at him, saying, "Yeah, I'm fine. I was just fine with it for two years, I think--"

"The scars say otherwise, though." Roy interjected. "Don't they?"

He was walking towards the window as well, not truly intending to but going none the less.

"Yeah, but I'm still here." Ed countered.

Now standing over the younger, Roy said in a low voice, "But how much longer would that have lasted if we hadn't found you?"

"You know what," Ed began angrily, standing up, "I don't want to deal with you right now! What gives you the right to come in here and scold me like some spoiled child caught with their hand burned because they tried to steal a hot cookie?"

He was pacing again. Roy was surprised at the speed at which Ed stomped, flinging arms left and right in vehemence and gesticulation as he recanted,

"And yeah, I realize it was stupid, but what does that have to do with now? It was a frickin nightmare, not a premonition or a sign or something!" He turned to Roy, adding, "You can sit down you know."

Roy sat. Confused, he sat, wondering why Ed bothered with the not-quite polite remark as he's yelling at the elder. But none the less, Roy sat quietly enduring the abuse.

Ed watched and sighed when he noticed the look Roy gave him. "And I don't make any damn sense anymore." He continued pacing.

"So maybe you should get some sleep." Roy suggested quietly, testing the waters.

Ed scoffed. "I could say the same to you. What's your excuse, Mr-Lieutenant-General-Flame-Alchemist-Roy-Mustang?"

"You were pacing." Roy replied. "Loudly."

After stuttering incoherently for a moment, Ed rounded in another bout of pacing. "And of _course _it's _my_ fault! God forbid anyone sleep through _footsteps!_"

"I didn't mean--" Roy began, only cut off by,

"Well I guess I'm sorry, Lt. General! I'll remember to wear slippers next time I decided to almost _die_ in my sleep!"

When Ed passed Roy that time, the elder reached out to grab the hand swinging agitatedly. He intended on pulling Ed back to explain, but pulled a little too much. When Ed realized he wasn't moving, he was lying backwards across Roy's lap, staring in surprise at the equally surprised Roy.

Before Ed could start yelling again, Roy said, "Maybe next time you should just tell someone when you're scared."

"What...?" Ed muttered, not really focused, just staring hazily at the elder's eyes.

Rather than answer him, Roy brushed a thumb over Ed's lower lip, bringing the younger back to the current situation. Ed started, but didn't say anything; didn't encourage, didn't object. So the other leaned, very slowly, to almost press their lips together. But he stopped, giving Ed the choice.

He closed the distance, tentatively. Pressing, pulling back, pressing again.

There was no second guesses.

---

Well, there you go. Not the best, not the worst. But yeah, hope you liked it, and if you didn't... yeah. Thanks again for all the reviews and encouragement!


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